Gov. Walker Says More Money Coming For Fab Labs

Governor Walker says the recently-approved state budget has good news for schools hoping to put in FAB LABS in K-12 districts.

Walker Thursday stopped in Three Lakes, the site of the state's first fabrication lab in a K-12 setting, and said after the protracted budget debate, money for the labs has grown in the state budget...

".....With the FAB LAB here and the inspiration you provided people across the state, In (Joint Finance Committee) they kept intact the budget increase. We've more than doubled the amount of grants for FAB LABS across the state. Yesterday I saw new ones popping up in school districts big and small across the state....Rep. Mary Felzkowski on the committee was able to put $400,000 more dollars in for training...."

Many districts in the Northwoods now have or are in the process of getting the labs which use high-speed internet, sophisticated software and 3-D printers and other devices to manufacture items. Some say the FAB LABS could spur entrepreneurship in rural areas.

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Lakeland Union High School (LUHS) and its two elementary school partners aren’t the only school districts to be awarded fabrication laboratories (fab lab) grants this week by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation, but they are the first consortium to receive one.

A top state official says the Fab Lab started here and has now spread across the states. The Fabrication Laboratories take state of the art computer and Internet technology and harness it to create projects. Some say when it is fully fleshed out, it could revoloutionize manufacturing in rural America.

Grants ranging from $15,000 to $50,000 were awarded in the Northwoods.